Matty Fryatt finally finds 'closure' after injury ends playing career at 31

Matty Fryatt describes the decision to finally announce his retirement from football as “closure”. He has scored in every division, racked up 135 career goals at clubs including Leicester, Hull City and Nottingham Forest, and played in an FA Cup final. But after three operations on a persistent Achilles injury spanning nearly three years, and seemingly endless trips around Europe seeking a solution, he has accepted that retirement is the only option, at the age of 31. For many professional players, it is the day they dread but, for Fryatt, it almost feels like a cathartic moment, the dispersing of a dark cloud. “This is a big moment for me, but at the same time it’s been a long time coming. I haven’t played for nearly three years now so it was only natural,” he says. “I’ve given it everything, from when it all started and thinking it was going to be a minor injury to three years later and realising the only option is to call it a day. “It would have been so much easier to just run out onto the grass, feel comfortable and play a game of football, rather than go all over the world to see a surgeon in Germany, in Holland, in Portugal and getting absolutely nowhere. Matty Fryatt (left) playing for Leicester Credit: PA “When you’ve had half of your Achilles taken off, re-attached, bone smashed up and then put back on with someone saying you’ve got a good chance of coming back, it’s hard to take. This is closure, really.” Fryatt’s last game was for Forest in March 2015, but it was in November when the striker’s ordeal arguably started. Towards the end of a 2-1 defeat at Birmingham, he remembers a specific moment, picking up what he calls “a niggle” on his left Achilles. It was an innocuous incident, but ultimately life-changing. “I was jogging into their half for a goal-kick and I was just thinking, 'That feels a little bit uncomfortable',” he says. “I came into training on Monday and I couldn’t run. I thought I’d rest in the week and play on Saturday . “I did that for so long, but it was getting worse, even with the painkillers and resting as much as I could. Matty Fryatt celebrate scoring for Nottingham Forest before injury took its toll Credit: ACTION IMAGES “I was coming back in off the training pitch nearly crying, hobbling around in absolute agony. It was embarrassing. I was near enough in tears trying to run. “In the last game I played I was just like a statue. I was in real pain as well, it was ridiculous.” Fryatt had two operations, one minor and the other major in which they took away the Achilles and then re-attached it. Six-month rehabilitation followed both procedures but he never felt confident that the problem had been diagnosed properly. This unfolding nightmare occurred during a turbulent period in Forest’s history, under the chaotic regime of former owner Fawaz Al Hasawi, and though Fryatt is careful to point out that the club continued to pay his wages, there is clearly frustration over how it was handled. “At Forest it was like I was a car on the driveway, rusting away and they just thought ‘just leave it, we’ll get a new car’. I’d get further down the line and nobody would ask what’s happening with this rusting car. Matty Fryatt has come to terms with the fact his playing career is over Credit: PAUL COOPER “I just got lost and forgotten a bit. It never felt that anyone was asking ‘is he ever going to come back’. Oh, just send him for surgery again. “It was probably the way the club operated at the time. I didn’t even meet one of the managers [Philippe Montanier]. They paid my wages and for most of the operations, so I can’t grumble at that, but nobody was accountable for things.” Another operation followed, but it had taken two years for Fryatt to finally feel any progress after a course of injections. His contract ended at Forest last summer and he trialled with Burton Albion and then his first club, Walsall, where it all began in 2003. “As much as teams were doing their best to support me, I couldn’t get back to the level needed,” he says. A very young Matty Fryatt playing for Walsall - where his career started Credit: ACTION IMAGES Fryatt can understand how Arsenal’s Santi Cazorla must be feeling. Cazorla has not played since October 2016 after multiple operations on a persistent ankle problem but, like Fryatt six months ago, is desperate to keep the hope alive. “I don’t know the guy, but he’s been in X amount of operations in an area where there is the least blood-flow, so the healing process is terrible. It’s sounding a similar case. His Achilles is like mine without the skin graft. “I wish him well but what next? Don’t feel great, operation, what next? It’s completely different at Arsenal, but I’m looking at that thinking it’s not good for him because of the area it’s on and going from operation to operation.” Santi Cazorla has not played for Arsenal since October 2016 after multiple operations on a persistent ankle problem Fryatt is now only focusing on the future. He is about to start his ‘A license” coaching badges and appears a natural on the evidence of recent media work. “I’ve been blessed to play something that I love doing, to have a job that was a hobby and fun is everything that you dream about as a kid,” he says. “There are some great memories, such as the Leicester years and getting them promoted. I enjoyed my time at Hull and to get to a Cup final was ridiculous. I’d like to stay involved in it, or give something back. “This is a chance now to move onto the next chapter.”

Matty Fryatt finally finds 'closure' after injury ends playing career at 31

Matty Fryatt describes the decision to finally announce his retirement from football as “closure”. He has scored in every division, racked up 135 career goals at clubs including Leicester, Hull City and Nottingham Forest, and played in an FA Cup final. But after three operations on a persistent Achilles injury spanning nearly three years, and seemingly endless trips around Europe seeking a solution, he has accepted that retirement is the only option, at the age of 31. For many professional players, it is the day they dread but, for Fryatt, it almost feels like a cathartic moment, the dispersing of a dark cloud. “This is a big moment for me, but at the same time it’s been a long time coming. I haven’t played for nearly three years now so it was only natural,” he says. “I’ve given it everything, from when it all started and thinking it was going to be a minor injury to three years later and realising the only option is to call it a day. “It would have been so much easier to just run out onto the grass, feel comfortable and play a game of football, rather than go all over the world to see a surgeon in Germany, in Holland, in Portugal and getting absolutely nowhere. Matty Fryatt (left) playing for Leicester Credit: PA “When you’ve had half of your Achilles taken off, re-attached, bone smashed up and then put back on with someone saying you’ve got a good chance of coming back, it’s hard to take. This is closure, really.” Fryatt’s last game was for Forest in March 2015, but it was in November when the striker’s ordeal arguably started. Towards the end of a 2-1 defeat at Birmingham, he remembers a specific moment, picking up what he calls “a niggle” on his left Achilles. It was an innocuous incident, but ultimately life-changing. “I was jogging into their half for a goal-kick and I was just thinking, 'That feels a little bit uncomfortable',” he says. “I came into training on Monday and I couldn’t run. I thought I’d rest in the week and play on Saturday . “I did that for so long, but it was getting worse, even with the painkillers and resting as much as I could. Matty Fryatt celebrate scoring for Nottingham Forest before injury took its toll Credit: ACTION IMAGES “I was coming back in off the training pitch nearly crying, hobbling around in absolute agony. It was embarrassing. I was near enough in tears trying to run. “In the last game I played I was just like a statue. I was in real pain as well, it was ridiculous.” Fryatt had two operations, one minor and the other major in which they took away the Achilles and then re-attached it. Six-month rehabilitation followed both procedures but he never felt confident that the problem had been diagnosed properly. This unfolding nightmare occurred during a turbulent period in Forest’s history, under the chaotic regime of former owner Fawaz Al Hasawi, and though Fryatt is careful to point out that the club continued to pay his wages, there is clearly frustration over how it was handled. “At Forest it was like I was a car on the driveway, rusting away and they just thought ‘just leave it, we’ll get a new car’. I’d get further down the line and nobody would ask what’s happening with this rusting car. Matty Fryatt has come to terms with the fact his playing career is over Credit: PAUL COOPER “I just got lost and forgotten a bit. It never felt that anyone was asking ‘is he ever going to come back’. Oh, just send him for surgery again. “It was probably the way the club operated at the time. I didn’t even meet one of the managers [Philippe Montanier]. They paid my wages and for most of the operations, so I can’t grumble at that, but nobody was accountable for things.” Another operation followed, but it had taken two years for Fryatt to finally feel any progress after a course of injections. His contract ended at Forest last summer and he trialled with Burton Albion and then his first club, Walsall, where it all began in 2003. “As much as teams were doing their best to support me, I couldn’t get back to the level needed,” he says. A very young Matty Fryatt playing for Walsall - where his career started Credit: ACTION IMAGES Fryatt can understand how Arsenal’s Santi Cazorla must be feeling. Cazorla has not played since October 2016 after multiple operations on a persistent ankle problem but, like Fryatt six months ago, is desperate to keep the hope alive. “I don’t know the guy, but he’s been in X amount of operations in an area where there is the least blood-flow, so the healing process is terrible. It’s sounding a similar case. His Achilles is like mine without the skin graft. “I wish him well but what next? Don’t feel great, operation, what next? It’s completely different at Arsenal, but I’m looking at that thinking it’s not good for him because of the area it’s on and going from operation to operation.” Santi Cazorla has not played for Arsenal since October 2016 after multiple operations on a persistent ankle problem Fryatt is now only focusing on the future. He is about to start his ‘A license” coaching badges and appears a natural on the evidence of recent media work. “I’ve been blessed to play something that I love doing, to have a job that was a hobby and fun is everything that you dream about as a kid,” he says. “There are some great memories, such as the Leicester years and getting them promoted. I enjoyed my time at Hull and to get to a Cup final was ridiculous. I’d like to stay involved in it, or give something back. “This is a chance now to move onto the next chapter.”

Matty Fryatt finally finds 'closure' after injury ends playing career at 31

Matty Fryatt describes the decision to finally announce his retirement from football as “closure”. He has scored in every division, racked up 135 career goals at clubs including Leicester, Hull City and Nottingham Forest, and played in an FA Cup final. But after three operations on a persistent Achilles injury spanning nearly three years, and seemingly endless trips around Europe seeking a solution, he has accepted that retirement is the only option, at the age of 31. For many professional players, it is the day they dread but, for Fryatt, it almost feels like a cathartic moment, the dispersing of a dark cloud. “This is a big moment for me, but at the same time it’s been a long time coming. I haven’t played for nearly three years now so it was only natural,” he says. “I’ve given it everything, from when it all started and thinking it was going to be a minor injury to three years later and realising the only option is to call it a day. “It would have been so much easier to just run out onto the grass, feel comfortable and play a game of football, rather than go all over the world to see a surgeon in Germany, in Holland, in Portugal and getting absolutely nowhere. Matty Fryatt (left) playing for Leicester Credit: PA “When you’ve had half of your Achilles taken off, re-attached, bone smashed up and then put back on with someone saying you’ve got a good chance of coming back, it’s hard to take. This is closure, really.” Fryatt’s last game was for Forest in March 2015, but it was in November when the striker’s ordeal arguably started. Towards the end of a 2-1 defeat at Birmingham, he remembers a specific moment, picking up what he calls “a niggle” on his left Achilles. It was an innocuous incident, but ultimately life-changing. “I was jogging into their half for a goal-kick and I was just thinking, 'That feels a little bit uncomfortable',” he says. “I came into training on Monday and I couldn’t run. I thought I’d rest in the week and play on Saturday . “I did that for so long, but it was getting worse, even with the painkillers and resting as much as I could. Matty Fryatt celebrate scoring for Nottingham Forest before injury took its toll Credit: ACTION IMAGES “I was coming back in off the training pitch nearly crying, hobbling around in absolute agony. It was embarrassing. I was near enough in tears trying to run. “In the last game I played I was just like a statue. I was in real pain as well, it was ridiculous.” Fryatt had two operations, one minor and the other major in which they took away the Achilles and then re-attached it. Six-month rehabilitation followed both procedures but he never felt confident that the problem had been diagnosed properly. This unfolding nightmare occurred during a turbulent period in Forest’s history, under the chaotic regime of former owner Fawaz Al Hasawi, and though Fryatt is careful to point out that the club continued to pay his wages, there is clearly frustration over how it was handled. “At Forest it was like I was a car on the driveway, rusting away and they just thought ‘just leave it, we’ll get a new car’. I’d get further down the line and nobody would ask what’s happening with this rusting car. Matty Fryatt has come to terms with the fact his playing career is over Credit: PAUL COOPER “I just got lost and forgotten a bit. It never felt that anyone was asking ‘is he ever going to come back’. Oh, just send him for surgery again. “It was probably the way the club operated at the time. I didn’t even meet one of the managers [Philippe Montanier]. They paid my wages and for most of the operations, so I can’t grumble at that, but nobody was accountable for things.” Another operation followed, but it had taken two years for Fryatt to finally feel any progress after a course of injections. His contract ended at Forest last summer and he trialled with Burton Albion and then his first club, Walsall, where it all began in 2003. “As much as teams were doing their best to support me, I couldn’t get back to the level needed,” he says. A very young Matty Fryatt playing for Walsall - where his career started Credit: ACTION IMAGES Fryatt can understand how Arsenal’s Santi Cazorla must be feeling. Cazorla has not played since October 2016 after multiple operations on a persistent ankle problem but, like Fryatt six months ago, is desperate to keep the hope alive. “I don’t know the guy, but he’s been in X amount of operations in an area where there is the least blood-flow, so the healing process is terrible. It’s sounding a similar case. His Achilles is like mine without the skin graft. “I wish him well but what next? Don’t feel great, operation, what next? It’s completely different at Arsenal, but I’m looking at that thinking it’s not good for him because of the area it’s on and going from operation to operation.” Santi Cazorla has not played for Arsenal since October 2016 after multiple operations on a persistent ankle problem Fryatt is now only focusing on the future. He is about to start his ‘A license” coaching badges and appears a natural on the evidence of recent media work. “I’ve been blessed to play something that I love doing, to have a job that was a hobby and fun is everything that you dream about as a kid,” he says. “There are some great memories, such as the Leicester years and getting them promoted. I enjoyed my time at Hull and to get to a Cup final was ridiculous. I’d like to stay involved in it, or give something back. “This is a chance now to move onto the next chapter.”

Matty Fryatt finally finds 'closure' after injury ends playing career at 31

Matty Fryatt describes the decision to finally announce his retirement from football as “closure”. He has scored in every division, racked up 135 career goals at clubs including Leicester, Hull City and Nottingham Forest, and played in an FA Cup final. But after three operations on a persistent Achilles injury spanning nearly three years, and seemingly endless trips around Europe seeking a solution, he has accepted that retirement is the only option, at the age of 31. For many professional players, it is the day they dread but, for Fryatt, it almost feels like a cathartic moment, the dispersing of a dark cloud. “This is a big moment for me, but at the same time it’s been a long time coming. I haven’t played for nearly three years now so it was only natural,” he says. “I’ve given it everything, from when it all started and thinking it was going to be a minor injury to three years later and realising the only option is to call it a day. “It would have been so much easier to just run out onto the grass, feel comfortable and play a game of football, rather than go all over the world to see a surgeon in Germany, in Holland, in Portugal and getting absolutely nowhere. Matty Fryatt (left) playing for Leicester Credit: PA “When you’ve had half of your Achilles taken off, re-attached, bone smashed up and then put back on with someone saying you’ve got a good chance of coming back, it’s hard to take. This is closure, really.” Fryatt’s last game was for Forest in March 2015, but it was in November when the striker’s ordeal arguably started. Towards the end of a 2-1 defeat at Birmingham, he remembers a specific moment, picking up what he calls “a niggle” on his left Achilles. It was an innocuous incident, but ultimately life-changing. “I was jogging into their half for a goal-kick and I was just thinking, 'That feels a little bit uncomfortable',” he says. “I came into training on Monday and I couldn’t run. I thought I’d rest in the week and play on Saturday . “I did that for so long, but it was getting worse, even with the painkillers and resting as much as I could. Matty Fryatt celebrate scoring for Nottingham Forest before injury took its toll Credit: ACTION IMAGES “I was coming back in off the training pitch nearly crying, hobbling around in absolute agony. It was embarrassing. I was near enough in tears trying to run. “In the last game I played I was just like a statue. I was in real pain as well, it was ridiculous.” Fryatt had two operations, one minor and the other major in which they took away the Achilles and then re-attached it. Six-month rehabilitation followed both procedures but he never felt confident that the problem had been diagnosed properly. This unfolding nightmare occurred during a turbulent period in Forest’s history, under the chaotic regime of former owner Fawaz Al Hasawi, and though Fryatt is careful to point out that the club continued to pay his wages, there is clearly frustration over how it was handled. “At Forest it was like I was a car on the driveway, rusting away and they just thought ‘just leave it, we’ll get a new car’. I’d get further down the line and nobody would ask what’s happening with this rusting car. Matty Fryatt has come to terms with the fact his playing career is over Credit: PAUL COOPER “I just got lost and forgotten a bit. It never felt that anyone was asking ‘is he ever going to come back’. Oh, just send him for surgery again. “It was probably the way the club operated at the time. I didn’t even meet one of the managers [Philippe Montanier]. They paid my wages and for most of the operations, so I can’t grumble at that, but nobody was accountable for things.” Another operation followed, but it had taken two years for Fryatt to finally feel any progress after a course of injections. His contract ended at Forest last summer and he trialled with Burton Albion and then his first club, Walsall, where it all began in 2003. “As much as teams were doing their best to support me, I couldn’t get back to the level needed,” he says. A very young Matty Fryatt playing for Walsall - where his career started Credit: ACTION IMAGES Fryatt can understand how Arsenal’s Santi Cazorla must be feeling. Cazorla has not played since October 2016 after multiple operations on a persistent ankle problem but, like Fryatt six months ago, is desperate to keep the hope alive. “I don’t know the guy, but he’s been in X amount of operations in an area where there is the least blood-flow, so the healing process is terrible. It’s sounding a similar case. His Achilles is like mine without the skin graft. “I wish him well but what next? Don’t feel great, operation, what next? It’s completely different at Arsenal, but I’m looking at that thinking it’s not good for him because of the area it’s on and going from operation to operation.” Santi Cazorla has not played for Arsenal since October 2016 after multiple operations on a persistent ankle problem Fryatt is now only focusing on the future. He is about to start his ‘A license” coaching badges and appears a natural on the evidence of recent media work. “I’ve been blessed to play something that I love doing, to have a job that was a hobby and fun is everything that you dream about as a kid,” he says. “There are some great memories, such as the Leicester years and getting them promoted. I enjoyed my time at Hull and to get to a Cup final was ridiculous. I’d like to stay involved in it, or give something back. “This is a chance now to move onto the next chapter.”

Matty Fryatt finally finds 'closure' after injury ends playing career at 31

Matty Fryatt describes the decision to finally announce his retirement from football as “closure”. He has scored in every division, racked up 135 career goals at clubs including Leicester, Hull City and Nottingham Forest, and played in an FA Cup final. But after three operations on a persistent Achilles injury spanning nearly three years, and seemingly endless trips around Europe seeking a solution, he has accepted that retirement is the only option, at the age of 31. For many professional players, it is the day they dread but, for Fryatt, it almost feels like a cathartic moment, the dispersing of a dark cloud. “This is a big moment for me, but at the same time it’s been a long time coming. I haven’t played for nearly three years now so it was only natural,” he says. “I’ve given it everything, from when it all started and thinking it was going to be a minor injury to three years later and realising the only option is to call it a day. “It would have been so much easier to just run out onto the grass, feel comfortable and play a game of football, rather than go all over the world to see a surgeon in Germany, in Holland, in Portugal and getting absolutely nowhere. Matty Fryatt (left) playing for Leicester Credit: PA “When you’ve had half of your Achilles taken off, re-attached, bone smashed up and then put back on with someone saying you’ve got a good chance of coming back, it’s hard to take. This is closure, really.” Fryatt’s last game was for Forest in March 2015, but it was in November when the striker’s ordeal arguably started. Towards the end of a 2-1 defeat at Birmingham, he remembers a specific moment, picking up what he calls “a niggle” on his left Achilles. It was an innocuous incident, but ultimately life-changing. “I was jogging into their half for a goal-kick and I was just thinking, 'That feels a little bit uncomfortable',” he says. “I came into training on Monday and I couldn’t run. I thought I’d rest in the week and play on Saturday . “I did that for so long, but it was getting worse, even with the painkillers and resting as much as I could. Matty Fryatt celebrate scoring for Nottingham Forest before injury took its toll Credit: ACTION IMAGES “I was coming back in off the training pitch nearly crying, hobbling around in absolute agony. It was embarrassing. I was near enough in tears trying to run. “In the last game I played I was just like a statue. I was in real pain as well, it was ridiculous.” Fryatt had two operations, one minor and the other major in which they took away the Achilles and then re-attached it. Six-month rehabilitation followed both procedures but he never felt confident that the problem had been diagnosed properly. This unfolding nightmare occurred during a turbulent period in Forest’s history, under the chaotic regime of former owner Fawaz Al Hasawi, and though Fryatt is careful to point out that the club continued to pay his wages, there is clearly frustration over how it was handled. “At Forest it was like I was a car on the driveway, rusting away and they just thought ‘just leave it, we’ll get a new car’. I’d get further down the line and nobody would ask what’s happening with this rusting car. Matty Fryatt has come to terms with the fact his playing career is over Credit: PAUL COOPER “I just got lost and forgotten a bit. It never felt that anyone was asking ‘is he ever going to come back’. Oh, just send him for surgery again. “It was probably the way the club operated at the time. I didn’t even meet one of the managers [Philippe Montanier]. They paid my wages and for most of the operations, so I can’t grumble at that, but nobody was accountable for things.” Another operation followed, but it had taken two years for Fryatt to finally feel any progress after a course of injections. His contract ended at Forest last summer and he trialled with Burton Albion and then his first club, Walsall, where it all began in 2003. “As much as teams were doing their best to support me, I couldn’t get back to the level needed,” he says. A very young Matty Fryatt playing for Walsall - where his career started Credit: ACTION IMAGES Fryatt can understand how Arsenal’s Santi Cazorla must be feeling. Cazorla has not played since October 2016 after multiple operations on a persistent ankle problem but, like Fryatt six months ago, is desperate to keep the hope alive. “I don’t know the guy, but he’s been in X amount of operations in an area where there is the least blood-flow, so the healing process is terrible. It’s sounding a similar case. His Achilles is like mine without the skin graft. “I wish him well but what next? Don’t feel great, operation, what next? It’s completely different at Arsenal, but I’m looking at that thinking it’s not good for him because of the area it’s on and going from operation to operation.” Santi Cazorla has not played for Arsenal since October 2016 after multiple operations on a persistent ankle problem Fryatt is now only focusing on the future. He is about to start his ‘A license” coaching badges and appears a natural on the evidence of recent media work. “I’ve been blessed to play something that I love doing, to have a job that was a hobby and fun is everything that you dream about as a kid,” he says. “There are some great memories, such as the Leicester years and getting them promoted. I enjoyed my time at Hull and to get to a Cup final was ridiculous. I’d like to stay involved in it, or give something back. “This is a chance now to move onto the next chapter.”

Matty Fryatt finally finds 'closure' after injury ends playing career at 31

Matty Fryatt describes the decision to finally announce his retirement from football as “closure”. He has scored in every division, racked up 135 career goals at clubs including Leicester, Hull City and Nottingham Forest, and played in an FA Cup final. But after three operations on a persistent Achilles injury spanning nearly three years, and seemingly endless trips around Europe seeking a solution, he has accepted that retirement is the only option, at the age of 31. For many professional players, it is the day they dread but, for Fryatt, it almost feels like a cathartic moment, the dispersing of a dark cloud. “This is a big moment for me, but at the same time it’s been a long time coming. I haven’t played for nearly three years now so it was only natural,” he says. “I’ve given it everything, from when it all started and thinking it was going to be a minor injury to three years later and realising the only option is to call it a day. “It would have been so much easier to just run out onto the grass, feel comfortable and play a game of football, rather than go all over the world to see a surgeon in Germany, in Holland, in Portugal and getting absolutely nowhere. Matty Fryatt (left) playing for Leicester Credit: PA “When you’ve had half of your Achilles taken off, re-attached, bone smashed up and then put back on with someone saying you’ve got a good chance of coming back, it’s hard to take. This is closure, really.” Fryatt’s last game was for Forest in March 2015, but it was in November when the striker’s ordeal arguably started. Towards the end of a 2-1 defeat at Birmingham, he remembers a specific moment, picking up what he calls “a niggle” on his left Achilles. It was an innocuous incident, but ultimately life-changing. “I was jogging into their half for a goal-kick and I was just thinking, 'That feels a little bit uncomfortable',” he says. “I came into training on Monday and I couldn’t run. I thought I’d rest in the week and play on Saturday . “I did that for so long, but it was getting worse, even with the painkillers and resting as much as I could. Matty Fryatt celebrate scoring for Nottingham Forest before injury took its toll Credit: ACTION IMAGES “I was coming back in off the training pitch nearly crying, hobbling around in absolute agony. It was embarrassing. I was near enough in tears trying to run. “In the last game I played I was just like a statue. I was in real pain as well, it was ridiculous.” Fryatt had two operations, one minor and the other major in which they took away the Achilles and then re-attached it. Six-month rehabilitation followed both procedures but he never felt confident that the problem had been diagnosed properly. This unfolding nightmare occurred during a turbulent period in Forest’s history, under the chaotic regime of former owner Fawaz Al Hasawi, and though Fryatt is careful to point out that the club continued to pay his wages, there is clearly frustration over how it was handled. “At Forest it was like I was a car on the driveway, rusting away and they just thought ‘just leave it, we’ll get a new car’. I’d get further down the line and nobody would ask what’s happening with this rusting car. Matty Fryatt has come to terms with the fact his playing career is over Credit: PAUL COOPER “I just got lost and forgotten a bit. It never felt that anyone was asking ‘is he ever going to come back’. Oh, just send him for surgery again. “It was probably the way the club operated at the time. I didn’t even meet one of the managers [Philippe Montanier]. They paid my wages and for most of the operations, so I can’t grumble at that, but nobody was accountable for things.” Another operation followed, but it had taken two years for Fryatt to finally feel any progress after a course of injections. His contract ended at Forest last summer and he trialled with Burton Albion and then his first club, Walsall, where it all began in 2003. “As much as teams were doing their best to support me, I couldn’t get back to the level needed,” he says. A very young Matty Fryatt playing for Walsall - where his career started Credit: ACTION IMAGES Fryatt can understand how Arsenal’s Santi Cazorla must be feeling. Cazorla has not played since October 2016 after multiple operations on a persistent ankle problem but, like Fryatt six months ago, is desperate to keep the hope alive. “I don’t know the guy, but he’s been in X amount of operations in an area where there is the least blood-flow, so the healing process is terrible. It’s sounding a similar case. His Achilles is like mine without the skin graft. “I wish him well but what next? Don’t feel great, operation, what next? It’s completely different at Arsenal, but I’m looking at that thinking it’s not good for him because of the area it’s on and going from operation to operation.” Santi Cazorla has not played for Arsenal since October 2016 after multiple operations on a persistent ankle problem Fryatt is now only focusing on the future. He is about to start his ‘A license” coaching badges and appears a natural on the evidence of recent media work. “I’ve been blessed to play something that I love doing, to have a job that was a hobby and fun is everything that you dream about as a kid,” he says. “There are some great memories, such as the Leicester years and getting them promoted. I enjoyed my time at Hull and to get to a Cup final was ridiculous. I’d like to stay involved in it, or give something back. “This is a chance now to move onto the next chapter.”